Stooooopid Ulra-tri's keeping me broke and dateless for 30 years.

See you next year.

If you've ever done an ultra - you know that the words ultra and festive (or festival) do not or should not go together.


Best wishes with this.

Whistler is insanely crazy mad with tourists in the summer now. I was there for the full IRONMAN Canada there when it was last run there. It did not seem like a great combo, to be honest with you. Whistler was VERY busy, big tour buses careening all over the place and throngs of tourists milling all about, but few if anyone seemed to know anything about the IRONMAN race/event - maybe that's not that big a deal! However, the original model for IM that Graham Fraser really blew-up years ago with the original expansion of IM races across North America, modeled after the success of IMC in Penticton, is take the race/event to where it will be a BIG deal in those communities!

Now I know these Ultra Triathlon races/events tend to be quiet a bit smaller in numbers, so maybe all of the above matters little!

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

Just bumping this thread back to the main page.
Fun fact. This years Ultraman Canada (which may be the last) marks 30 years since the original running of the event where my old mate Tom Price won in dramatic fashion. He did have an awesome crew though which I reckon made the difference. Hehehe..

This years Ultraman Canada (which may be the last)


Nick - Quick question. Ultra Running is booming right now. But Ultra-Triathlon . . . what's going on?

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

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There are a whole bunch of new events around the world but as has been the norm over the years there is a lot if infighting in the Ultra-Family and that means a split in loyalties and confusion among the athletes.

The IUTA is facing a loss of confidence in its team from race directors and so Mammoth Endurance in the USA has opened up it's own "governing body " in direct competition and now with the folks at Ultraman in Hawaii being so stubborn and insular in their thinking we have Larry Ryan beginning this festive and new World Champ's for the Ultra515/ (Ultraman distance) in Whistler

Personally ,I find it hard to justify the cost of a lot of these events now but then again I am a grumpy old dinosaur.
I have committed my support to the new Whistler races and will be there to line up for one of them next year to celebrate my 30year anniversary of winning my first Ultra. (Steve King will be there to celebrate with me as he came 2nd in '94)

Aside from the cost and infighting that Nick’s already mentioned, logistics and risk are also playing a part. And the financial commitment to do an Ultra515/Ultraman vs an ultra run event is significantly higher.

Last year I got injured during my final prep for Ultraman Canada, and had to finally wave the white flag and pull out, a week before we were due to fly out for the race. The financial impact of that injury was not insignificant - lost accommodation, lost entry fee, not to mention the inconvenience to the crew who also had to change their plans last minute. It was only thanks to COVID that we had transferable airline tickets, otherwise we would have lost that too.

For an ultra run event you just have to organise yourself and your on-course nutrition. For a 515 you need to plan for three disciplines as well as organise food, transport and accommodation for your crew over three (plus) days. The logistics are quite different.

All of that comes with the territory, but nevertheless it does add a layer of caution when deciding where and when to commit to the next one. And being brutally honest, my experience when I had to pull out of Ultraman Canada has made me gun shy about trying to get back to that particular event (even if it does continue). Race Directors understandably need to ensure their event is financially sustainable, but they also need to recognise that the event puts a huge responsibility on the athlete, more so than your standard Ironman or ultra run. If it were as simple logistically as an Ironman, and priced comparatively, I’d do an Ultraman/515 every year, instead of Ironman.

As for this new Ultra515 in Canada, I was really happy to see Larry announce it, and I really hope it gets well supported. I don’t know yet if I’ll be on the starting line, but I’m seriously considering it.

I dunno Steve, I'm pretty optimistic about this one, + not only because I have some skin in the game (will be doing race announcing along with Steve K).

The race courses - yes courses! Should have a minimal impact on the Whistler auto-environment. No road closures no "trains" going to Pemberton + Squamish.

Larry does have a lot of buy in from the locals, he certainly has done his homework and to get more details on how it will work out - he is going there this Aug. long weekend to see just how busy it is at that time of year.

I, like you, was there for Ironman's last dance back in 2019 and sort of agree with you.

It was just one of many, many things going on in Whistler. The event seemed to fade into the background of everything else that was going on that weekend. I did however try to ask a lot of the locals (shop owners + volunteers) how they felt about it leaving. Most expressed disappointment. But not like the outrage amoungst Penticton folks when it left. Of course you know there were also a lot of folks who said to themselves, "good riddance" (in both cases).

One of the things that I think Whistler may have over Penticton at that time of year is hotel rooms. As y'all know the whole OK Valley from June-Sept,. is very, very, expensive. From my experience racing in Whistler, is not quite as much.

Fingers crossed! Hoping for a long-term Ultra home for Canadians as well as those international folk.

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http://www.fitspeek.com the Fraser Valley's fitness, wellness, and endurance sports podcast

The race courses - yes courses! Should have a minimal impact on the Whistler auto-environment. No road closures no "trains" going to Pemberton + Squamish.


With all due respect the foot-print of an Ultra Race is much lower than an IM - so I'm sure everything will be good.

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

Not sure how I missed hearing about this one, but that's great. Nice training setup for IMC, and as a weekender this would be super convenient for once as well.

Unless I get pulled into a relay, I'm in for the gravel version for sure although that bike route is *mighty* burly. That's like 3,500m of climbing? The FSR up Cougar Mountain (several grizzly bear sightings up there this summer, although to be fair they came right down into Rainbow Park and Lost Lake as well) is rough, like verging on MTB rough. I'm assuming from the map it goes down the Soo FSR at the top but I haven't gone that far yet.

I had heard, anecdotally, that events like this don't typically take place right in the middle of summer in Whistler due to the high permit cost and that's why BCBR stopped going there. My info is about a year out of date, but last year Xterra and Xfondo were both scheduled in immediately before that (alleged) cutoff. That might explain the high entry fee for an off road event?

Whistler village and its beaches are indeed very busy, as is the Sea to Sky highway itself, but outside of that and in the back country you can't usually tell whether it's a long weekend or not. And surprisingly the hotels etc are less expensive than Penticton during IMC. Granted in Whistler during IMC about half the town had no idea it was even going on whereas in Penticton it is definitely the main event.

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